BLIND, EDUCATION OF THE. 



BLIND, EDUCATION OF THE. 



101 



t readily occur to every oae that UM employment of an alphabet 

 oompoaed in the manner which ha* been explained, will ever bo 

 necessarily tedtou. ; but it should be borne in mud that there is BO 

 *uppoable system of tangible figure* significant of thought, that U not 

 more or leu liable to the aune objection. The inventors are aware 

 that among the different methods by which people at a distance might 

 be enabled to hold mutual intercourse through the medium of a 

 language addressed to the touch, there are aome that would doubtless 

 be more expeditious than thru*: but they flatter themselves that, 

 when all the advantage* and disadvantage* of each particular method 

 are duly wondered, the plan which they hare been led to adopt will 

 appear, upon the whole, decidedly the beet. There can scarcely be any 

 system of tangible signs, which it would be less difficult either to learn 

 or to remember ; since a person of ordinary intellect may easily acquire 

 a thorough knowledge of the string-alphabet in an hour and retain it 

 for ever. Yet the inventors can assure then- reader* that it is impos- 

 sible for the pen or the press to convey ideas with greater precision. 

 Besides the highly important properties of simplicity and accuracy 

 which their scheme unites, and in which it has not been surpassed, it* 

 possesses various minor, nor yet inconsiderable advantages, in which 

 it is presumed it cannot be equalled by anything of its kind. Fur 

 example, its tactile representations of articulate sounds are easily 

 portable the materials of which they are constructed may always be 

 procured at a trifling expense and the apparatus necessary for their 

 construction is extremely simple. In addition to the letters of the 

 alphabet, there have been contrived arithmetical figures, which it U 

 hoped will be of great utility, as the remembrance of numbers U often 

 found peculiarly difficult Palpable commas, semicolons, Ac. hare 

 likewise been provided to be used, when judged requisite. The iim n- 

 tor* have only to add, that sensible of the happy results of the inven- 

 tion to themselves, and commiserating the fate of their fellow-prisoners 

 of darkness, they most earnestly recommend to all intrusted with the 

 education of persons deprived of sight carefully to instruct them in 

 the principles of orthography, as the blind being iu general unable to 

 spell is the chief obstacle to their deriving, from the new mode of 

 Dignifying thought, the much-wanted benefit which it is designed to 

 extend to their melancholy circumstances." 



We entirely agree in the views here taken of the string-alphabet ; a* 

 an auxiliary to the blind in the acquirement and application of language, 

 and in the absence of a tangible writing on paper, we think no in- 

 vention is superior to it, and we should be glad to have seen it in 

 more common use among the blind in our recent inquiries at various 

 institutions. The advice to instruct the blind carefully in spelling is 

 important ; for if this acquirement be not made, they cannot commu- 

 nicate by language with their fellow men otherwise than orally. To 

 those blind persons who have lived together in institutions, and 

 formed friendships which they wish to continue when separated by 

 distance, the string-alphabet offers a mode of correspondence as 

 perfect as our pen, one too which may be intrusted to ordinary 

 person* to convey without any probability of the communication 

 being deciphered. 



David Macbcath, one of the inventors, was connected with tin- 

 Edinburgh Asylum, as pupil and teacher, for twenty-five years. His 

 inventions for teaching were numerous, and applicable to instruction 

 in music, arithmetic, and mathematics. His string-alphabet was fully 

 described in the ' Edinburgh Philosophical Journal,' some years ago. 

 He conducted the public examinations of the Edinburgh pupils, where 

 he never failed to excite the interest and attention of those present 

 towards the objects of their solicitude. 



In the infancy of the art of teaching the blind, raixd marie was 

 invented, in order that they might be enabled to acquire their lessons 

 independent of a master. This invention is at present little used, for 

 the constant practice of those who pursue this branch of study is a 

 continual exercise of the memory, and they are able to learn very long 

 pieces by the ear alone. The reason assigned by Dr. Guillie 1 for the 

 disuse of embossed music is very satisfactory, " the scholar could in it 

 read with his fingers and perform at the same time." Thorough bass 

 is however a* readily studied liy the Mind a* by the seeing, by means 

 of " Tansure s Musical Board, described in his ' Musical Grammar.' 

 This board is three feet long, about eight or nine inches wi- 

 has two staves, with ledger lines, above, between, and below. These 

 are raised upon the surface of the board about one-sixteenth of .in 

 inch ; the top of the stave line* being flat, while that of the ledger 

 lines U round. It is pierced all over with little holes, so as to 

 receive the pins, which represent the notes. We may here m.-ntion 

 the invention of Don Jaime Isern, the object of which is to enable 

 a blind composer to transfer his thought* to paper in the usual 

 musical notation, without the necessity of employing an amanuensis. 

 Kor this invention the large silver medal of the London Society for 

 icourageinent of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce was given 

 'i J. Isern in 1827. There is a full description of it, with 

 illustrative engravings, in vol. xlv. of the ' Society's Transactions.' 

 In the same volume there is an interesting communication on the 

 subject of types fur the blind, by Mr. O. Gibson of Birmingham. This 

 oommumcaliun is connected with various invention* which we have 

 had the pleasure of inspecting, and of which we shall give a short 

 account, referring our readers who desire to be made perfectly 

 acquainted with the invention to the work above mentioned. Mr. 



Gibson's aim has been to supply the blind with a mode of writing and 

 keeping their own accounts. " A cube of wood, or of any other con- 

 venient material, the sixe of which will depend on the delicacy of touch ' 

 in each blind person, is to have raised on one side of it a let 

 figure, or stop, in the manner of a printer's type. On the opposite or 

 lower side of the cube is a representation of the same character as is 

 on the upper side, but formed of needle-points inserted into- the wood. 

 If therefore a piece of paper be hud on a cushion, or surface of felt, and 

 the type be pressed down, the points will enter the paper, and form on 

 the tinder surface of it a raised or embossed representation, by toe 

 projection of the burs where the point* have penetrated, and this 

 embossed character may be distinguished, and consequently read by 

 the touch." In its outward appearance, the whole apparatus of Mr 

 Gibson form* a small piece of cabinet furniture, When the 

 thrown open an even surface of cushion presents itself. Upon this 

 there is a flat piece of mahogany about an inch broad, which can be 

 moved from one notch to another, to any part of the desk. This is 

 for the letters to lie against, like the composing-Mick of a printer. The 

 letters he uses are a composition of tin and lead ; the upper surface is 

 elevated so that he can distinguish the letter, and the under surface 

 has inserted in it needle-points of the shape of the letter on the upper 

 surface. In writing the Lord's Prayer, after the paper is placed, he 

 takes out of its division, and puts it at the beginning of the line, 

 then U, then R, gently pressing each letter down, as he puts it next 

 the preceding one. At the end of a word he inserts a small 

 mahogany space, and proceeds till his performance is complete ; 

 whether it be a copy of anything which he wishes to make, or an 

 original piece of composition. It will be observed that, by putting 

 two or more pieces of paper underneath his pointed types, copies will be 

 multiplied. The letters are in small divisions, which occupy side- 

 drawer* in his printing cabinet. The use of this machine implies more 

 knowledge than the uneducated blind possess, as they must know how 

 to spell. However, it is a part of its object to teach spelling 

 this communication to the London Society for the Encouragement of 

 Arts, Ac., Mr. Gibson was presented with the gold Vulcan medal of 

 the Society. Another of Mr. Gibson's inventions may be here noticed. 

 It forms a drawer of the cabinet above-mentioned, and is intended 

 for working the rules of arithmetic. This Mr. G. calls his slate. 

 divided into rows by elevated slips of wood, along which the figures 

 are to slide. Like the types they are formed of metal, but h. 

 needle-points underneath. We have seen him perform examples in 

 multiplication and other rules by this apparatus, which is simply and 

 beautifully conceived. It is obvious that all the elementary operations 

 in arithmetic may be performed by it, and that by the union of this 

 and the writing apparatus, a blind person may write his own letters, 

 and keep his own accounts. We have dwelt upon the subject of 

 reading and writing for the blind, feeling that they are deserving of 

 all the importance which can be attached to them. Lieutenant Holman, 

 the blind traveller, used Wedgwood's apparatus for writing in the 

 dark. A very ingenious instrument of this nature has been invented 

 by the late Mr. Hughes, who was for many years the governor of the 

 School for the Blind at Manchester. We return to the early in 

 pursued iu this art. 



Embossed maps and globes for teaching geography would u.v 

 be suggested to those persons who were engaged in teaching i < 

 to the blind by raised figures. M. Weissembourg, a blind i 

 Mannheim, appears to have been the first person who made relief-maps; 

 up to which time the instruction given to the blind on geograpi 

 merely oral. Various methods for producing inapt* of this 001 

 are now employed. 



Palpable methods have also been adopted for making the blind 

 acquainted with different branches of astronomical knowledge, ami, in 

 .iiMition to raised maps of the heavens, various ingei uncut* 



have been contrived to further their progress in the scien 

 astronomy. The application of Hiich apparatus to the purpose* of 

 teaching has been attended with encouraging success. We shall detail 

 I" 1'iir.tued in teaching arithmetic when we speak of 

 the Edinburgh Institution, where the well known imvir 

 Saunderson has been so much improved that, by its means, any opera- 

 tion may be readily ]>erforiuod. For a description of the original 

 invention, which was the united work of Dr. Moyesand Dr. Saunderson, 

 we refer to the article ' Ulind' in lo ' (V-l: 

 clopnxlia Britannica.' By the improvement* which we shall dr 

 it will be seen how greatly the simplicity of the contrivance has been 

 increased. Previous to these tangible methods of teaching aritl 

 the blind were instructed on this - 

 part Iwing entirely mental. A publication of late years, wli 



I exclusively for the blind, is of a higher character and aim 

 than any that have preceded it. though li will gi < 



be considered as equal to many of those mentioned, in point of utility. 

 :k to whii-h we allude is an elementary treatise on mathematics 

 by the Kev. WiHi.un Taylor of York, called ' The Diagram - 

 Elements of Geometry, arranged according to Simpson'* edition in au 

 embossed or tangible form, fur the use of blind person* who wish to 

 enter upon the study of that noble science,' York, 1 (*_'*. As a means 

 of leading to the acquisition of a science for which some blind persons 

 have shown a predilection, this beautifully executed work is of great 

 value, and we hope that the blind generally who show a superior 



